Home / Lectures / Likert Dissertation Prize Winner: Madeline Ong, Singapore Management University
Beliefs about the Malleability of Moral Character

Likert Dissertation Prize Winner: Madeline Ong, Singapore Management University
Description
Semester:
- Winter 2018
Speakers:
Lecture Time:
Fri, March 30, 2018 @ 1:30 pm to 3:00 pm
Lecture Location:
R0220 Ross School of Business
Speaker Webpage(s):
https://business.smu.edu.sg/faculty/profile/147936/Madeline-ONG
Introduced By:
Eun Bit Hwang
Abstract
My dissertation explores how individuals’ implicit beliefs about the malleability of moral character influence their attitudinal and behavioral responses in the aftermath of their wrongdoing. Across four studies, individuals’ beliefs that moral character can be developed were related to higher levels of self-forgiveness in the aftermath of wrongdoing, both when these beliefs were measured (Study 1) and when they were experimentally manipulated (Studies 2 to 4). Furthermore, a structured reflection intervention eliminated the limitations of beliefs that moral character is fixed, such that those with beliefs that moral character is fixed were just as likely as those with beliefs that moral character can be developed to display self-forgiveness in the aftermath of wrongdoing (Study 3). Finally, self-forgiveness resulted in behavioral consequences; self-forgiveness mediated the relationship between individuals’ belief about the malleability of moral character and their likelihood of repeating the wrongdoing (Study 4). Overall, this research contributes to our understanding about how individuals’ beliefs about the malleability of moral character can influence their attitudes to their past transgressions and their subsequent behavioral change.
Recording & Additional Notes
Madeline Ong is an Assistant Professor of Organizational Behavior & Human Resources at Singapore Management University’s Lee Kong Chian School of Business. She earned her Ph.D. in Management and Organization at the University of Michigan’s Stephen M. Ross School of Business. Her current research interests include ethics and leadership development. Her research has been published at the Journal of Applied Psychology and Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes.